


A Heartful Cry - Redux

by Skylin3



Category: Persona 3, Persona Series
Genre: Anger, Angst and Feels, Battle, F/M, Grief/Mourning, Guilt, Heavy Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-04-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:41:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23871022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skylin3/pseuds/Skylin3
Summary: She never wanted to hurt her friends, especially the one her best friend loved.  And even though he wasn't around anymore it was now her responsibility to correct her mistakes and solve the problem ahead. She had one more battle to go through, and her opponent? Yukari.Yes, this is a re-post of my own story! I'll explain more in the notes!
Relationships: Aigis & Yuuki Makoto (Persona Series), Arisato Minato/Takeba Yukari, Persona 3 Protagonist/Takeba Yukari, Takeba Yukari/Yuuki Makoto
Comments: 3
Kudos: 14





	A Heartful Cry - Redux

**Author's Note:**

> So if you recognize the title than you most likely already read it the first time around. The original version was written in December, just after I had finished my FeMC run and began my third playthrough so that I could get Yukari's special ending with Minato/Makoto. Anyway, when I originally wrote this story, it wasn't coming from a good place and I realized I had fallen into a trap of disliking a character for seemingly no reason. The way I wrote Aigis in the original was mediocre at best if I'm honest, but time has passed and I accepted a lot of what her character is meant to be and what she adds to the story. So recently, I happened upon the track "Heartful Cry" again and I was just reminded of this story and I felt the urge to come and fix it! So I did that, the problem is that since I orphaned the original there isn't a way to delete that work since I "relinquished" all rights to it. So that's why this exists the way it does, that being said if you're up to it, I still do recommend reading the original because I did change a lot of things besides simply adding to it.
> 
> What those changes are, you'll just have to read for yourself I suppose. Anyway, enough of my rambling, I do hope you enjoy this new and improved version. Enjoy!
> 
> Oh, I almost forgot! You might want to listen to this when Yukari confronts Aigis... you don't have to, but I think it'll boost the effect of the drama there. :)  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WU6VVInvA2w

"Palladion!" A voice cried out in the center of the stadium, followed by a thunderous boom.

Aigis had just successfully defeated both Junpei and Koromaru in battle. She wasn't proud of it, having to fight her dear friends for the sake of a key was the worst possible outcome for her. And now her friends laid there on the ground, paying the ultimate sacrifice by slowly disintegrating into small flames.

She wished things could have turned out differently, she wanted to talk it out longer with the others. However, such an outcome was no longer an option. And her final opponent was the loved one of her closest friend - Yukari.

Aigis knew how much Yukari cared for Makoto, and truthfully she couldn't blame her for wanting to see him again. In fact, Aigis also wanted to see Makoto again. Ever since she awoke to Orpheus and gained the power of the wild card, she kept seeing him in her dreams. But every time she tried to reach out to her friend, he would walk away, ignoring her pleas. It pained her so much to be within reach only for him to slip away just as she caught up. She could only imagine how Yukari felt in all this. Her indecisiveness put her in this situation she was in, it was her fault for not choosing she thought. If only she had chosen to help Yukari get her wish, they would have both seen Makoto again. If that had happened she wouldn't have to watch Junpei and Koromaru in the state they were in, Ken and Akihiko would still be here. If she had done all that she could've been much happier for it, but... "I didn't."

Aigis shook her head, trying to wash away her doubts and looked ahead towards the door in front of her. 

"No if that had happened, we wouldn't be here right now," she whispered to herself.

"It's time," her "sister" Metis spoke softly, bringing her out of her thoughts. "Only one more battle and the key will be ours."

"Shut up," Aigis spoke with a tinge of anger. "Don't remind me of what I have to do, Makoto-san would be upset if he saw all of us fighting right now. You promised me I wouldn't have hurt my friends! Why, why did you lie to me?!"

"Sister I-"

"Don't call me your sister! We are not related, and you are just another machine!"

Metis stayed silent. It was true that she had been the one to arrange the duels. She had indeed promised Aigis that no matter what her friends would not be harmed. She could feel Aigis's resentment towards her for that. It didn't matter that she guaranteed their survival, she still lied to her dear sister. 

Aigis pushed past her, heading towards the next arena. She was exhausted, yet she knew that she had to write her wrongs and face Yukari in a duel. No matter how much it pained her, there was no turning back now.

"Ai-chan wait!" Junpei cried out, just barely hanging on to whatever of his body remained. "Save her okay… she's hurting right now, and she isn't thinking straight… but- argh!"

Aigis turned her attention to her friend. She looked on in horror as his body continued to slowly fade away. _"Why are you still hanging on? Just let go… I can bring you back still…"_ she told herself.

"Don't give me that look Ai-chan, I promise you, it's okay! This whole flame deal is only temporary, right? This is nothing…!" He was breathing raggedly as he tried to hold on. "A-anyway… whatever she says or does… don't get mad at her… please. I know exactly what she's going through… just please go easy on her."

Aigis nodded as tears escaped her eyes. Junpei's body had finally disintegrated into a flame and rose to light the torch above the stadium. She looked towards the gates opened, taking in one final "breath" before setting her sights ahead.

She walked through the gate and looked towards the center. She saw Yukari and Mitsuru standing there just like others had before them. To her surprise, neither of the women were in a battle stance despite having their weapons drawn. Yukari hung her head low, while Mitsuru stood tall, meeting Aigis's gaze. Aigis wore an expression full of regret as she continued to approach the two women. 

"You're finally here," Yukari said in a low voice. "It's time to decide Aigis… who takes those keys…!"

"Yukari-san I-" 

"What? Are you going to tell me how you wanted to avoid all this???" Yukari let out a painfully sarcastic laugh. "Don't even bother! You know this has to happen!"

"I know… But I also know that Makoto-san wouldn't have wanted this!" She said.

The mention of Makoto's name made Yukari tense. She stared Aigis down with eyes full of pain and sorrow.

"D-don't you dare say that you know what he would have wanted! You made your choice Aigis! And I swear to you I will take those keys from you!" Tears formed at the corner of eyes as she reached for her Evoker. Gun aimed at her temple, she pulled the trigger and an explosion of blue light followed thereafter. "ISIS!" She cried out.

"So be it. Palladion!" Aigis summoned her persona to meet Yukari's head-on. Their battle began and at first, they exchanged powerful blasts of magic weakening each other bit by bit. They were evenly matched, with neither side gaining the advantage over another, not even Yukari's arrows managed to make it through the crossfire.

However, as quickly as Yukari was to summon her persona she immediately withdrew it. Aigis was surprised by the sudden action that she too stopped in the midst of battle. What she hadn't anticipated though, was for Mitsuru to use her persona's ice attacks to skate across the battlefield in an elegant fashion. She managed to tackle Aigis, sending her to the ground. Mitsuru retreated immediately as Yukari once again commanded Isis with a flick of her hand, sending powerful bursts of wind towards Aigis. Before she had a moment to defend herself, Metis jumped in front of her, taking the brunt of the hit head-on.

"What are you doing sister?! Get up and fight!" Metis demanded.

"Metis… you saved me… but why?" Aigis looked at her confused. "I've treated you with no respect, I don't understand?"

"I don't care how you treat me. I don't care if you hate me. Heck, I don't care if you wished me dead, but I do know that if you lose it's all over!" Metis spoke confidently. "Your friend told you to save her right? Then let's do just that!"

Aigis was stunned by the sudden lecture from her sister. She had expected to fight this battle alone, yet Metis still came to her aid. She had found a sense of renewed vigor and rejoined the battle.

"Palladion! I need your help!" she cried out. However, her persona this time was covered in a dark blue sheen. Small cracks of white light formed on her persona's silhouette and from it arose an entirely new being. "I feel it. Her name is Athena." 

Metis and Aigis moved on the offensive and tried to even the odds. Aigis's newfound power seemed to be working for a while, but because she had just awakened to it, she was still too weak to properly use it. Yukari and Mitsuru regained the advantage and pressed their assault on the two shadow weapons. Yukari moved with swift movements to confuse Aigis as she danced around her while using Isis as a shield to shoot her arrows. Mitsuru rushed forward with sheer force, launching large icicles along her path. The sheer power of those two seemed to be too much for both Aigis and Metis as they were being overpowered with no clear entry into Yukari's and Mitsuru's defenses. She continuously scanned the two women but to no avail. 

Before she could think of a proper strategy, Yukari had already made use of Mitsuru's icicles and blasted Aigus with a wind-infused arrow. The damage sustained was devastating sending her to her knees. Metis returned the hit by placing an elbow strike on Yukari's side, sending her flying back against the floor.

Their fight continued and neither side was seemingly giving up despite how tired they all were. The sudden realization that anymore fighting would lead to all of their deaths weighed heavily on Aigis's mind. She had done all she could, yet she wasn't strong enough to beat Yukari's determination. She tried talking sense into Yukari once more, hoping that she could finally break through to her.

"Yukari please stop! None of us will last much longer if we keep this up!"

"Then quit already! Let me have the key dammit!" She yelled with her voice breaking into angry sobs. "I-I just want to see him again! Why can't you understand that?! You'll never understand what he meant to me, your bond with him wasn't the same!"

"Yukari…" she said softly.

"I loved him! I made him a promise on that rooftop! You were there for crying out loud! So why, why do you get to decide what happens?! Answer me!" Yukari shouted.

"I-I…" she couldn't answer. She didn't know what to say or how to feel. No matter what she said Yukari was right, she didn't share that same bond that Yukari had. No matter what she thought was best for her dead friend, it didn't amount to what they had. So who was she to interfere? she thought to herself.

"You're right… I'm so sorry Yukari… I give up." 

"Sister no! You know he wouldn't have wanted this!"

Aigis glared at her sister. "You don't understand! Yukari-san is right! I'm not the same as her, I could never decide what's best! That's why all of this is happening right now! It's my fault he died anyways… I sealed death inside him! I caused his death! Can't you see that?!"

"Sister…" Metis stood there in shock unable to process Aigis's revelation.

Meanwhile, Yukari only became even more enraged, she felt as though she was being mocked. Aigis playing the victim in front of her didn't please her if she was going to get her way this wasn't it! Her face was riddled with hatred and her eyes began to glow an eerie yellow. Mitsuru recognized that look. From her grandfather's old studies, when a person became unstable their shadow would either manifest or take over them completely. The person that she was fighting with wasn't there anymore. She watched as Yukari's shadow began to slowly take its time with her arrow, the green glow from her wind magic became a sinister red. That was no ordinary attack, it was most likely meant to be fatal. Mitsuru aimed her evoker at her head and moved quickly to restrain the brunette.

"Artemisia!" A second later Yukari had become encased in ice, leaving only her face uncovered from the attack.

"What are you doing Mitsuru-senpai?! Let me go!" Yukari spoke in a distorted voice.

She slapped Yukari, hoping to bring some sense back to her. "No! I agreed to help you because you were my friend! I didn't agree to help you murder our friends!"

Yukari was still upset, but soon after her expression became one of shame. She had lost herself in her fit of rage, so much so that she was willing to kill her friend over it. If Makoto saw her now, she knew he would have been disgusted with her. The yellow glow faded from her eyes and all that was left were tears streaming down her face.

"What the hell have I done… I- I'm the worst person ever…"

"No, Yukari. I understand the feeling of wanting the ones you love back, but you must know that there are limits to how far you can take those emotions." Mitsuru spoke in a motherly tone.

"You're right… you're so right…" No matter what she had did, deep down she knew Makoto would have never approved of it. She took her selfishness too far and almost murdered a friend for it. She looked to Aigis with a shameful, yet sad smile. "Do it. Defeat us… You win…"

Aigis still looked defeated by Yukari's earlier remarks. It didn't matter if she was right, the fact remained that she still had to win. She rose weakly from where she sat and took aim at both Yukari and Mitsuru. She charged and charged hoping that this shot would be the last she would ever have to fire on her friends. However, a mere moment before she launched the attack a familiar ethereal figure appeared behind Yukari. It was Makoto, or at least that's who she believed it was as it took Yukari into a tight embrace.

It seemed as though only Aigis noticed him as the other two had yet to react. Though at that moment she finally understood what Yukari had meant by their bonds being different. Even if it was harsh, there was truth in her words. Because even in death Makoto still chose to come to Yukari's aid and that wouldn't change ever. Makoto's spirit looked at her and mouthed a few words to her.

"Thank you," He echoed out.

A satisfied smile formed on her face before finally launching the final blast; at last, the battle was finally over. She let herself fall from exhaustion, before looking towards Mitsuru and Yukari once more. He was still there, this time separated from them. He smiled at her before finally fading away and returning to his resting place.

"Thank you, Makoto-san.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and feedback are always appreciated! Do you think I did a better job with Aigis in this version? I want to read your opinion because I do value everyone's thoughts and opinions, so long as they remain respectful of course. Anyway, I think I'm finally happy with this story and I promise to not orphan it this time. 
> 
> I hope you a good rest of your day/night and remember to stay safe!


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